I promise
by groovyhornbill
Summary: Charles and Erik were two little boys. They played hide and seek in the creepiest part of the mansion. Erik played a prank on Charles.    Inspired by James McAvoy's interview in the Graham Norton show.
1. Chapter 1

**Summary:** Charles and Erik were two little boys. They played hide and seek in the creepiest part of the mansion. Erik played a prank on Charles.

Inspired by James McAvoy's interview in the Graham Norton show where he told us about his nasty prank on his sister when they were kids.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing.

**Note:** For Starrose's birthday.

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Erik hated this time of the year. Not that he hated the rain. He actually loved the cool weather and the fresh smell of earth and grass after the rain. But he hated it because he and Charles were not allowed to play outside on the day like this, especially on the day like this. He always thought that he was already a big boy, and he could take care of himself as well as Charles. But Charles' nanny, Raven – who became like a big sister to them both, had always made it cleared that she would not let a six-year-old Erik and a not-quite-five-year-old Charles ran outside during the rain.

Erik wished they could play treasure hunt in the forest around the lake outside. They loved to play outside and treasure hunt was one of their favorite games. Most of the time, Erik got to be the leader and Charles would always follow him around, follow any adventure that Erik could think of.

But the rain did not seem to stop anytime soon and Raven would definitely not allow them to go outside today, so, there was nothing much for them to do inside the mansion. They had just finished watching cartoon, solving 4 jigsaw puzzles, and playing their 3rd game of dominos. They really ran out of any game they wanted to play.

Though Charles was the one who suggested they played hide and seek, it was Erik – out of boredom and need to find something exciting to play, who insisted that they played in the top story of the mansion. It was the part that hardly anybody went there. The hallway was spooky sometime because there were lots of pictures of the Xavier's ancestors decorated on both walls. Charles used to tell Erik that he believed that the eyes in those pictures always followed him wherever he went.

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Although playing hide and seek in the creepy part of the mansion should be exciting and spooky, if not a bit adventurous, all Erik felt at that moment was only irritation. He was really annoyed this time. Not that Charles had found him, again, but it was the 4th time now that Charles had just found him at the same incredible speed. It was as if Charles had peeped through the gap between his fingers when he started to count one, two, three, … and knew exactly which way to follow Erik, though he knew that being a good boy as he was, Charles would never cheat like that.

So, being annoyed and moody, Erik had a plan for Charles this time. A plan to make sure that Charles would not find him.

This time, when Charles started to count, Erik ran away and hid behind the antique cabinet in the farthest corner of the hallway, cloaked himself from head to toe with someone's old dark cloak that had a funny musty smell he found in the nearby cabinet.

When he heard Charles' soft footstep getting closer, he slowly straightened up and bowed his head a little to hide his mischievous grin and tried to make a gloomy face so that Charles was literally startled when he found a cloaked figure stood behind the cabinet in the farthest corner of the spookiest hallway in the mansion, right where he sensed it should be Erik.

Slowly, the cloaked figure turn to face him, and in the dim light of the hallway, Charles was really scared he could not find any word to say. After a moment, his bright blue eyes widen when he recognized the familiar outline of his friend's face. But before he could say anything, the figure said in the voice deeper and lower than his friend's voice: "I know what you're looking for, but I'm afraid you will never find your friend ever again."

Scared as he was, Charles' ever sweet-sounding voice seemed uncertain when he asked, "What do you mean?"

"Erik was dead. He'd been taken. I'm his spirit. I was allowed to stay here long enough to tell you. Then I'll be gone too," said the cloaked figure.

Charles' eyes became watery, his red lips trembled. "I don't believe you." He retreated back a few paces, then turned abruptly and ran down the hall, crying. Erik's heart skipped a beat. It was pounding loudly in his chest when he saw what really happened. He only thought that he would just tease Charles, and make him pouted a bit. He always secretly thought that a pouting Charles was lovely. But he never thought that this would really upset his dear friend so much that he would be crying like that.

Before Erik recovered from his initial shock and went after Charles, Raven appeared around the corner and Charles ran straight into her arms. Erik heard Charles tearfully told her through his sob that Erik was dead. That made Raven's brow furrowed when she glanced behind Charles and Erik knew that she saw his still cloaked figure stood back not far behind. Raven did not show any sign to Charles that she saw him though. When she gently prompted Charles to tell her what had happened, Erik had a feeling that she might understood what really had happened, and that he would be in trouble for sure.

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Charles was sitting in one of the plush armchairs that was too large for him in the living room, crossing his arms tightly in front of his chest and pressing his lips together into a thin line. He looked out the window, and did not look back into the room, or to be specific, he refused to glance in Erik's direction. Though Erik was sitting there, not far from him, for a good twenty minutes now, Charles was still not looking in his direction. It was quite a record, though, since Charles had never been able to stay still without fidgeting for as long as five minutes.

"I'm sorry, ok? I never meant to make you cry." It was Erik who finally broke the silence in the room.

"…" Still, nothing came out of Charles' mouth. This was also another marvel, and a sign that Erik was really in big trouble, since Charles had never been quiet for this long. He knew now why Raven did not punish him right then, because leaving him to deal with an angry Charles on his own was quite a hard enough punishment.

"I just meant it to be a joke. I didn't think you would really believe it," Erik said with a little frustration at the silence from Charles.

"I'll let you choose our movies to watch for the whole week, ok?" Erik said, and as an afterthought, added, "And also what games we play on the next weekend too."

Charles' crossed arms relaxed a bit, his lips did not press together as thin as they were. Erik waited in silence for a while until Charles started speaking, though he still refused to turn to look at Erik. "It's not a joke. It's not fun at all. Why did you lie to me like that?"

"I.. uh.. I'm sorry Charles. I didn't really know why I thought of that plan. But you must understand that it really annoyed me, the way you always find me so fast like that every game," Erik said in a somewhat defeated tone.

"Why!" Charles asked as he slowly turned toward Erik, not clearly understood.

"You know, every time I went to hide, it took you almost no time at all to find me. That's why I was so annoyed." Erik's reply was a weird mix of accusation and embarrassment.

"But I didn't cheat! I can't help it. I just know where to find you. It's like I could feel you all the time, in here," Charles said in his small, uncertain voice, and pointed his finger to his temple.

"I know you didn't cheat. But that doesn't mean I don't get to be annoyed, right?" Erik said sheepishly. "Here, you can have all my brownies. I'm not hungry." Even as he said the last part, Erik's stomach was making a loud protest.

Charles looked at Erik with a very amused hint in his eyes. The corner of his lips curled upward into a beginning of a smile. His clear blue eyes shone a little brighter. "I don't think your tummy agreed with you."

Erik blushed and ducked his head in embarrassment. Though Charles thought Erik's pink cheeks were both funny and cute, he saved him from feeling more embarrassed by offering, "We can share all the brownies together. I think Raven gave me super big plate today. I can hardly eat all of mine."

Erik glanced up and asked tentatively, "Do you forgive me?"

Charles nodded, and then he added, "Only if you promise not to die again."

Erik started to grin, and he couldn't stop his grin from growing wider and wider at the knowledge that Charles forgave him. He promised solemnly, "I promise, I'll never die or make you cry ever again."

Charles beamed at him, and Erik internally pledged to himself that he would do anything he could to keep his promise and make his Charles happy forever.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary:** Charles and Erik were two little boys. This time they had surprises for each other. Can be read as a sequel to "I promise", or can be read separately.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing.

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Erik felt restless. He felt like this since yesterday. It was almost ten o'clock in the morning, two more hours and it would have been twenty-four-hour straight that he hadn't seen Charles.

Yesterday was the first time since they had known each other that Charles missed their daily routine of meeting and playing together without any good reason. At least, not good enough reason for Erik anyway. Yesterday morning, Charles told him that he needed to help Raven with something and did not know how long it would take. He did not want to make Erik wait for him. So, he thought it might be better if Erik would go back home early after their early lunch despite his protest that he could wait for however long it took. Charles promised him that he would finish with this thing he helped Raven with before lunch tomorrow and would definitely be able to play with Erik as usual in the afternoon.

By now, Erik was a little suspicious about what was so important that Raven needed only Charles' help and not his. He thought that if Raven needed any help, she could just ask the other maids in the house to do so. Why would she specifically need Charles to help her? Erik also thought that it was weird with the way that Charles looked a little sheepishly guilty for having to send Erik back home early in order to help with Raven's work? And more importantly, why did Charles not just tell him what exactly was Raven wanted him to do? Erik was quite certain that Charles did look torn between wanting to give him more specific reason to ease his frustration and determining to not do just that.

Since they had known each other and become best friends few years ago, they never had secret between them. Charles always told him everything and Erik never kept any secret from him either. Erik still trusted Charles with that, no matter how desperate he felt right now.

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As soon as Erik went back to his home, Charles hurriedly went in search for Raven and found her in the kitchen preparing what was needed for the surprise that Charles intended for Erik tomorrow. Everything was set. Though Raven was the one who would be doing the main tasks, she did allow Charles to do some other tasks that were not too dangerous and kept Charles away from the hot stove.

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Half an hour to go before noon, Erik went to the garage where he placed his present for Charles, so that he could move it into the house and hid it in his bedroom instead. He had an idea for his present from what he heard his father said last evening. Erik heard him made a call to confirm with the florist that he would pick up his bouquet tomorrow evening after work. It took Erik a while to realize what his father would need a bouquet for, since it was not his mother's birthday or his parent's anniversary.

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Yesterday, after coming back from Charles' home, or you could say it was mansion, Erik did not really have anything to do. So, he walked around his house to look for some materials that he would use for his planned surprise for Charles. Though his house was not as big as Charles' mansion, his mother always took a good care of their lovely gardens, especially the variety of flowers that would bloom almost throughout the year. Erik was always proud of his home since Charles' always said that he preferred it here to his own mansion because it was always warm and felt like a real home and he also loved to snuggle up to Erik on their favorite couch whenever they spend their time watching cartoon here.

He found what he was looking for in the garage, a small shovel and an empty basket-like flowerpot. He stood on tiptoe to peer through the kitchen window to make sure that his mother was not looking at the moment. Then, he hurriedly dug up the big budding red tulip and moved it to the flowerpot that he found. He poured in some potting soil and watered it a bit, just like he used to see his mother did.

If only Erik turned back to the house, he would have seen his mother stood with a knowing smile on her face, watching him from the living room's window not far from the kitchen. His mother even pretended that she did not notice how dirty his t-shirt and jeans were.

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When Charles and Raven arrived at Erik's home today a few minutes before lunch, Erik's frustration was gone like it never happened before. Charles beamed at him and started chattering about which animated movie he wanted to pick up for their afternoon together. Erik was so happy for the prospect of spending the afternoon with Charles again that he didn't really care if Charles chose to watch _The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh_ for the third time in this month.

After lunch, they sprawled out on their couch watching _Winnie the Pooh_. Charles sat with chocolate chip cookies in one hand, a glass of orange juice in the other hand, eyes fixed on the screen, while Erik was quite contented in lying down with his head rested on Charles' lap while watching.

During the movie, while he finished his cookies and orange juice, Charles occasionally wriggled his legs a bit but Erik pretended that he did not notice his fidgeting. "I almost can't feel my legs, Erik!," Charles protested to no avail. How could Erik let go of the most comfortable pillow in the world. After a while, Charles would try to settle into the most comfortable pose with Erik's still rested on his lap.

When the movie ended, Charles finally got Erik's head off his lap, claiming that he needed to use the toilet. It was that moment that Erik sneaked to his bedroom to pick up his flowerpot for Charles and tiptoed back to the living room. He heard his mother and Raven talking in the kitchen about the new bakery recipe that Raven wanted to try for Charles and Erik.

Erik barely had time to hide his flowerpot behind the couch when Charles came into the room suspiciously hiding something behind his back.

"What's that?" Erik asked him trying to have a better look without moving from the couch.

"I've got something for you, but you have to close your eyes first," replied Charles.

Though curious, Erik closed his eyes obediently. He heard Charles moved into the room cautiously, "Don't peek." He sensed that Charles came to stop in front of him, when he heard Charles said importantly, "Hold out your hands too."

When Erik hold out his hands, Charles placed a box on to his outstretched hands, and said "You can open your eyes now."

What Erik saw was a bright blue paper box that was a bit bigger than his palm. The color of the box matched Charles' eyes, Erik's most favorite color. Erik could clearly saw that Charles was nervous while waiting for Erik to open the box. After it seemed like too long time of admiring the box, Erik finally opened its lid to have a look inside. Right now, Charles was so anxious that he also leaned out to have a better look at Erik's face when he looked inside the box too.

There was a heart-shape chocolate the size of Erik's palm inside the box. On top of it, there were small drawings in pink color of two smiling stick figures holding hand. Beneath the figures, there were writings in Charles' childish handwriting. Though the words seemed to cramp together in such a limited space, Erik could clearly read them, _"For Erik, with love from Charles."_

The anxiety on Charles' face was lifted when he saw Erik's grin widened and widened until it threatened to split his face in half.

"Do you like it? I asked Raven to help me but I'm afraid I didn't do much because she would not allow me to be anywhere neared the stove or the hot chocolate," Charles spoke rapidly.

"Of course I like it. It was amazing. Thanks so much," Erik replied, still grinning. "Is this why you sent me back home too early yesterday?"

Charles smiled sheepishly, "Yes, I have to, you know. Are you still mad at me?"

"Actually, yesterday I was. But now that I know what did you up to, I think I can forgive you," Erik said with a smile. "I also have something for you too, just turn around for a second."

Charles looked excited at the surprise from Erik. He did not think that Erik would prepare anything for him. He did not even think that Erik would know what day was today. When he turned his back to Erik, he heard a movement from behind. Then Erik called out, "You can turn around now."

What Charles saw on the table in front of the couch made his eyes widened so much that Erik did not think it was possible for human's eyes to be that big. A moment of silence and then Charles looked up and beamed happily at Erik, and promptly threw himself at him, "Oh Erik, that is very beautiful."

Suddenly found himself with an armful of Charles, Erik almost tumbled over before he steadied himself with Charles still in his arm. "Happy Valentine's Day, Charles." Erik whispered shyly.

"Happy Valentine's Day, my dear friend."


End file.
